Outreach Programs

We are committed to broadening participation in computer science and information technology, extending the impact of our research and educational efforts, and engaging a new generation.

CAITE

Professor Rick Adrion directs the Commonwealth Alliance for Information Technology Education (CAITE). With leadership from UMass Amherst, CAITE designs and carries out comprehensive programs that address under-representation in information technology (IT) education and the workforce. The Alliance focuses on women and minorities in groups that are underrepresented in the Massachusetts innovation economy; that is, economically, academically, and socially disadvantaged residents in four regions of Massachusetts (east, central, southeast, and west).

Commonwealth Information Technology Initiative (CITI)

CITI is a public/private partnership to promote IT education, through strategic investments, that prepares graduates to participate, lead and innovate in the knowledge-based economy of Massachusetts. Launched in 2000, CITI brings together K-12, community colleges, public universities and industry to promote IT education across the curriculum and respond to technology workforce needs. CITI is led by Professor Rick Adrion and Project Manager Renee Fall.

Expanding Computing Education Pathways

The Expanding Computing Education Pathways (ECEP) Alliance builds on five years of work by the Commonwealth Alliance for IT Education (CAITE) and Georgia Computes! and on best practices in computing education, particularly those developed in the community of Broadening Participation in Computing (BPC) Alliances. CAITE and Georgia Computes! have been successful in facilitating state-level systemic change that has improved the quality of computing education, broadened participation in computing, and increased the number of students in the pathway to computing and computing-intensive degrees. Professor Rick Adrion is the PI and Renee Fall is the Co-PI.

Girls Inc. Eureka! Program

Launched in 2013 in collaboration with the College of Natural Sciences, Girls Inc. Eureka! is a summer program for middle and high school girls focusing on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math), health and wellness, and personal development. The five-year program recruits 30 new rising 8th graders annually and follows them until they graduate from high school. CICS faculty have held workshops on coding and other topics each year since the program's inception. The CS Building also serves as the program's headquarters.

NEAGEP Recruiting and Mentoring

The Northeast Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (NEAGEP) is one of 26 NSF-funded Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) programs in the US. The goal of the NEAGEP is to increase the number of domestic students receiving doctoral degrees and entering the professoriate in the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), particularly for students of those population groups underrepresented in STEM fields. The NSF has designated the University of Massachusetts Amherst the lead university in the NEAGEP. Computer Science faculty participate in NEAGEP activities by mentoring students in the UMass Summer Program for Undergraduate Research (SPUR) and by supporting recruiting efforts.

Research Experience for Undergrads (REU)

The College of Information and Computer Sciences offers REUMass 10-week summer research program funded by the National Science Foundation for undergraduates who will be entering their junior or senior year as of September. Student participants from around the nation receive a stipend to carry out an independent research project with other students and a faculty mentor. Populations underrepresented in computer science and community college students who are in the process of transferring, or have already transferred, to a four-year institution are particularly encouraged to apply.

Women in Engineering Career Day

The College of Information and Computer Sciences is a sponsor of UMass Amherst's annual Women in Engineering Career Day, hosted by the College of Engineering's Society of Women Engineers. The event brings over 200 young women from area high schools to campus to participate in hands-on engineering and computer science activities and hear from leaders in the field. The goal of the program is to excite, inspire, and encourage young women to pursue engineering or computer science as an academic track and career path.